So it’s not just me! Specifically, I disliked the last two episodes, one of which was produced by Ricky Gervais, from the BBC Office - I hated that one. The following one was better, but still a poor episode.
This week though, they landed right back on track - let’s just hope they can stay there.
The one with Michael emailing Jan’s racy picture? The ending of that one was priceless!
But to put it in perspective, this show on its worst day is better than many others on their best day. That’s my opinion, anyway.
Actually no - sorry, I was off by an episode.
I loathed “The Convict” (directed by Ricky) and disliked the followng one, which apparently was “A Benhiana Christmas,” where they pick up the waitresses from the restaurant.
I mostly agree, except for the aforementioned Convict episode. The charactors did not act at all like how I would expect them to act (imo) in that episode, and I really felt like I wasted 30 minutes of my life - didn’t laugh once, which is unheard for an Office episode.
Upon rewatch, she actually answers the phone, “Customer Service.”
I’ve decided I really like reading these threads before I view the episode, since I have to tape it and watch a day or two later. You all point out all sorts of nuances and physical things that I might otherwise miss, since I’m usually eating my dinner while I watch. By reading the thread first, I know when not to blink! Or when it’s worth rewinding to get that tiny raised eyebrow from Pam. And I usually end up watching the whole thing through twice just to catch those subtle things that I might not have known were there, where normally I would only watch once. Thank you!
I tape mine too, but read the threads afterwards - which is one of the reasons I rarely participate in the discussion - I’m usually late with an opinion.
Yeah, you can’t watch this show while eating. Too many sight gags.
On the British show: David was an insecure self-centered boob and his arc was the classic car accident/train wreck, in that it was painful to watch (a la “curb your enthusiasm”) and impossible to turn away from; unlike a car accident it was also pretty funny. The fact that it was a limited run meant that there was no need or desire to explain how he got to where he was, only that he somehow fooled upper management up until the middle of the story.
On this episode: I really expected Angela to Stand Up for Dwight. He was willing to quit his job to protect her, but she’s not willing to admit a (admittedly serious) screw-up to protect him?
By the way Dwight’s prepared statement was a work of pure genius (I am leaving to spend more time with my family – I almost fell out of my chair).
She’s really mad at Andy, but I don’t think she’s competent enough to hurt him; my impression of her character is that she’ll stew, talk about him behind his back, etc… She’s too officious and a believer in office protocol to really do anything to undermine him. I think the cold shoulder and the “death stare” are the limits of her repertoire.
The talk about Michael being a more-than-competent sales guy got me to thinking though. All of the good sales people I’ve known have been pretty perceptive people. You have to have the gab, but you’ve also got to understand your quarry (i.e. the make-overs, recognizing that a guy who has a picture of himself with a fish he caught won’t necessarily appreciate being on-upped by a salesman). Those qualities don’t necessarily translate to good management, but Michael’s general cluelessness about how to treat the people who work for him seems kind of out-of-place in that light.
Any thoughts?
I wouldn’t underestimate Angela. The cold shoulder is for people who are mildly annoying, or “slutty”, or just not on her approved list. But Andy wrecked part of her world, and I think she’s going to take that stick out of her ass and beat him to death with it.
Good point. He’s got a desperate need to be liked, but when he’s one-on-one with a potential customer he knows how to control that and use it to establish a connection. And maybe before he was management he was fine with his coworkers. But maybe it’s just being in charge of people that screws up Michael’s head.
Maybe Michael sees employees and customers as different breeds, requiring different methods of “handling”. I’ve worked for managers who treated customers with much more respect and care than employees.
There’s definitely a dichotomy there, and it’s hard to make sense of it except as a fictional construct.
I used to work with a guy who was a great salesman, and a good public speaker, but was disastrous as a manager. He couldn’t read people at all in the day-to-day, interpersonal things, and some of the stuff that came out of his mouth was as cringe-worthy as the stuff that Michael Scott says.
I think, though, when it came to making sales and public speaking, he was as effective as whatever script he was following. When the expectations and parameters were clear, he was spot-on. When situations required any sort of interpersonal judgment, though, all bets were off. I know it seems that sales would fall into the latter category, but somehow it didn’t for him. He could do enough corporate robot-speak and be very effective. It was the connecting with another human that flustered him.
Angela’s got to be feeling doubly guilty – at least, she should be. She’s the reason Dwight attempted his half-assed coup and ended up with Michael’s strike one in the first place.
I’m not surprised she didn’t want to come clean for Dwight, though. Not only does it call her office competency into question, it outs her relationship with Dwight – and she loses a lot of high ground for calling people slutty at that point.
Pam’s “don’t you wish you could be this happy all the time” was my favorite line – funny, perceptive, and, if Angela bothered to think about it, devastating.
Why did Ryan have such trouble? I assume he had some kind of pitch worked out, as he had asked Stanley to sit back. Is it just that there were 3 rather than 1 and they were all obviously good friends of Stanley? That doesn’t seem quite enough to turn Ryan into a quivering heap though.
All three of the men were black, which made Ryan uncomfortable.
I thought it was a combination of all three guys being black and older (just like Stanley), but also the uncomfortableness of Ryan having to give the entire sales pitch just standing right there in the lobby. He was probably all prepared to head into the office and get all professional, but he was totally taken off guard when they just stood there in the lobby and stared at him, waiting for him to make a move.
I’m kind of like this (though nowhere near as clueless as Michael!). Within a small group of close friends, I’m fine. And when, as you say, the parameters are clear, anything from cashier-shopper to lawyer-client, I’m fine. However, with acquaintances, or neighbors, or at parties, my social skills completely seize up. I get really anxious, and I’m very awkward.
With Michael, they’ve shown us he doesn’t know how to make friends, and considers inappropriate ways of making friends (what was it he said as a child on that TV show?), and clearly that includes having his employees love him. It seems he doesn’t want the friendship of customers - he knows his “salesman” role and plays it well, and none of his personal desperation gets involved.
I think she’s more concerned with keeping her relationship with Dwight still a secret, rather than worry over the tax form screwup. Her comment when she and Dwight were talking about it was something like, “but then everybody would know our business”.
Although I did for a minute wonder why she doesn’t just go tell Michael in his office, privately – not for everybody. But then I thought – we know how well Michael is able to keep personal secrets, from past episodes… 
His sales competence has actually been established on many occasions. Some here have mentioned a few. Another more recent one was the episode where Jan had asked Pam to keep track of what Michael did during the day, and she was having to write down things like “Cosby impersonation”. But then we find out later that every time Michael was on the phone going, “Hey hey hey!” – he was making a sale to a big customer. At the end of the ep, when Michael is leaving, and Pam is handling some paperwork and says to him, with admiration, “Michael… this is a huge sale!”
It’s one of the things that I find more interesting about his character… how he never manages to relate well to his employees (trying too hard to be “funny” and “laid-back”), but he relates perfectly well to customers. Often with some of the same schtick (like the Cosby impersonation over the phone, or the goofing-off dinner at Chili’s with the potential customers when Jan was there, last season, etc).
And the Jim/Dwight sales bit was just brilliant. Jim delights in messing with Dwight at all other times, but when they have a customer in front of them, they worked seamlessly as a team. Loved it.
The dynamic with customers is different. You don’t have to manage them. And you don’t spend the whole day with them. I think Michael’s customers see him as someone who is attentive and dependable. Quirky too? Sure, but no sweat. After the phone call or visit, the customer doesn’t hear from him again for a while. Michael is like a super sweet desert. Once in a while irresistible, but not too much at a time.